What were some crucial observations to take from Carolina Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold’s performance at the Atlanta Falcons in Week 8?
After another week of intense speculation surrounding his future, it was time for Carolina Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold to focus on the football side of things once again. Last weekend’s embarrassment and subsequent benching at the New York Giants needed a positive response, something the signal-caller hasn’t been able to accomplish throughout the team’s four-game losing run.
The Atlanta Falcons represented a solid chance for Darnold to put up some solid numbers. For all their talent on the offensive side of the ball, their secondary couldn’t be described as elite and they were conceding 250.5 yards per game through the air before this crucial NFC South divisional matchup.
Darnold is running out of chances to prove he is the man to lead the Panthers moving forward. Deshaun Watson trade talk dominated the lead-up to this game, with Carolina’s primary decision-makers having to call Christian McCaffrey on Friday evening to reassure the running back he wasn’t being offered to the Houston Texans.
There was a lot at stake for Darnold. Here are five major observations from the quarterback’s performance in Week 8.
Observation No. 1
Sam Darnold got off to a solid start
Things didn’t go according to plan when Chuba Hubbard fumbled the ball on the very first play. But Darnold settled everything down to lead the Panthers on an impressive drive immediately after.
Buoyed by Carolina restricting the Falcons to three points from strong field position, Darnold went almost perfect on the next series and almost had a touchdown had it not been for a highly debatable call regarding D.J. Moore’s catch in the end zone.
Carolina got plenty of assistance from the running game on this drive. However, Darnold made a couple of third-down throws to keep the chains moving and seemed in control of his emotions after a difficult week.
Sam Darnold was not helped by 1st half errors
Although Sam Darnold hasn’t been without blame for his poor recent run, a lot can be made of the lack of execution and silly mistakes from elsewhere on offense.
This was once again evident throughout the first half at the Atlanta Falcons. D.J. Moore dropped a sure-fire touchdown to extend his concerning run of individual mistakes and every time Darnold seemed to gain some momentum in the passing game, a penalty quickly halted any progress.
The Ian Thomas penalty that negated a big gain at a key moment was unacceptable. Royce Freeman also dropped a catchable ball and the offensive line also has their part to play.
Another big error came from tight end Tommy Tremble, with the rookie dropping a beautiful throw from Darnold late in the second quarter that sucked the life out of their drive at just the wrong time.
Carolina’s “Don’t Beat Ourselves” sign was a prominent feature throughout training camp.
This has not had the desired effect.
A distinct lack of execution even when Darnold is delivering dimes is costing the Carolina Panthers in a big way. Just why this keeps on happening to some outstanding skill position players is bemusing, to say the least.
Sam Darnold’s improvements pre-snap
One of the many criticisms regarding Sam Darnold has been a lack of control at the line of scrimmage. Some clock management issues and recognizing defensive schemes have played a leading role in the quarterback’s regression, but there were some notable improvements in this area of his game in Week 8.
Darnold got the snaps off quickly throughout the contest. There seemed to be much better communication between the signal-caller, offensive coordinator Joe Brady, and center Matt Paradis, which is a solid recipe for success if things continue in this fashion over the second half of the campaign.
The USC product is never going to be like Peyton Manning. Even though it is a vital element and can make Darnold’s life a lot easier if he gets things right consistently.
It did help that the Carolina Panthers relied heavily on the run, which was something Matt Rhule clearly wanted to do. However, Darnold also deserves his fair share of credit for doing his part at the line, checking the protection or pre-snap play call when required, and keeping the opposing defense on their toes.
After the last few weeks, any progress where Darnold is concerned was welcome. Controlling the tempo before the play officially begins was encouraging.
Sam Darnold got help from the running game
Matt Rhule made a mistake by publicly declaring their intention to run the football significantly at the New York Giants in Week 7. Thankfully, this is something the Carolina Panthers finally managed to attain against the Atlanta Falcons.
Despite a fumble on the first play from Chuba Hubbard, it was an impressive afternoon from the rushing attack. The offensive line carved out plenty of holes for them to run, which resulted in a collective effort and a season-high in terms of yardage.
Hubbard recovered from his disappointing start to flash his potential once again. Ameer Abdullah also made a considerable impression with more preparation time this week.
All this makes life easier for Sam Darnold. Atlanta’s defense had to focus more on the running game – especially in the second half – which gave the quarterback enough time in the pocket to either deliver a pass or even take the football himself for yards on the ground.
Of course, this came to an abrupt halt in the fourth quarter when Darnold opted not to slide and took a monstrous hit near the goal-line, which wasn’t the smartest move in the world by any stretch.
Carolina finished the game with 204 yards on 46 combined carries. A trend that can hopefully continue moving forward.
An early end to a nice bounce-back from Sam Darnold
As it turned out, the running play where Sam Darnold got his clock cleaned would be the quarterback’s final contribution. He was ruled out with a concussion upon further testing, so the Carolina Panthers will be anxiously awaiting his recovery this week before confirming his status for Week 9 against the New England Patriots.
There was a lot riding on this game for Darnold. All things considered, the No. 3 overall selection in 2018 can be pleased with his performance.
Darnold was efficient with the football and wasn’t responsible for a turnover. This was a huge step in the right direction after a torrid four-week spell.
His final stat line would have looked much better had it not been for some key drops and individual errors in the first half. Whether this is enough to get fans back onside is up for debate, but it was always going to be baby steps for Darnold after such a rough time under center.
There is still a long way to go for Darnold. However, considering another poor performance could have spelled the end of his long-term aspirations in Carolina, he handled the additional pressure well under immense scrutiny.